News: BHP Anglo CEO says BHP bid forced his hand on demerger of S.Africa assets

JOHANNESBURG, May 14 (Reuters) - The boss of Anglo American AAL.L said on Tuesday a bid by rival BHP (BHP) to take over the company forced him to accelerate plans for a spin-off of its South Africa's platinum assets, a move set to cause concerns in Pretoria weeks before a national election.

While Anglo was already working on its own review of its assets including the platinum and diamonds businesses, the timeline for the plan had to be speeded up after the approach from BHP, the world's No. 1, Anglo's CEO Duncan Wanblad said.

As a condition for its bid, BHP had requested that Anglo exit its platinum and iron ore units in South Africa.

After rebuffing two proposals from BHP which Anglo said undervalued the company and were too complicated to execute, the London-listed mining giant laid out a strategy that includes a potential break-up of the company by demerging or selling its steelmaking coal, nickel, diamonds and platinum businesses.

As part of the plan, Anglo said it was exploring a demerger of its troubled platinum unit, Johannesburg-listed Amplats, sending its shares down 10%.

"The only thing that the BHP approach did is that it forced the timeline on work that we were already doing," Wanblad said on a conference call after Tuesday's announcement.

"This is an acceleration of a strategy process that we were already executing. I have to say that I would probably not have announced it at this particular point of time."

Shares in Anglo unit Kumba Iron Ore KIOJ.J were trading about 2.3% higher, reversing earlier losses. Under the strategic review laid out on Tuesday Kumba would stay within the Anglo group.

South Africa holds a national election on May 29, with weak economic growth and high unemployment among the key issues on voters' minds.